AFL_CIO backs Senate's vote on reform

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Area Labor Federation, organized labor and other immigrant advocates have been “fighting for a pathway to citizenship for 11 million aspiring Americans for years, and now is finally the time to pass a law that fixes our country’s broken immigration system once and for all,” AFL-CIO officials said in a news release.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., cast a vote to pass historic immigration reform legislation on Thursday, and the bill cleared the Senate with a bipartisan majority of 68 votes, including every Democrat, the release says.

The path to citizenship is at the “heart of this bill” and it will provide relief for millions of immigrant families around the country, AFL-CIO officials said.

“This bill is not what we would have crafted. The massive buildup at the Southern border will have serious ramifications for border communities and American taxpayers, and we will work vigorously to change these provisions before this bill becomes law,” officials of AFL-CIO said. “Even with this amendment that brings an unprecedented buildup at the border, U.S. Sen Pat Toomey, R-Pa, remained unwilling to support this historic piece of legislation.”

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Dave Schaaf, chairman of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, said, “Sen. Toomey will go down on the wrong side of history and revealed that he was never serious about reform. His vote showed his willingness to stand in the way of millions of aspiring Americans getting on a path to citizenship.”

The recent Congressional Budget Office analysis estimates that the reform would decrease the federal deficit by $175 billion over the next 10-year period. AFL-CIO officials said this would be beneficial for state and local economies.

In a 20-year outlook, the CBO estimated that comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship would further decrease the federal deficit by an additional $700 billion.

The immigration debate moves to the House of Representatives.

Southeastern Pennsylvania Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO Executive Director Carol Carvalho said. “The American people are on the side of reform and want to see Congress solve this problem. Speaker Boehner and Republicans in Congress must find a way forward to make a pathway to citizenship for millions a reality.”

“We hope that Congress follows the lead of the United States Senate ... and votes for a comprehensive bill that fixes our broken immigration system once and for all,” AFL-CIO officials said.